Finding Pensions

csswiift

I’m at the stage where I need to start looking at my pension and making sure I have enough money paid into it to live comfortably when I retire (still 30 years away 😫)

I have no idea where to find my work place pensions and find out how much I have in them. Is there a way of tracing them using my N.I number?

p00hsticks

I don't believe there is at present, although it is something that is being considered.
If you can't remember all of your past employers, then I think you can submit a SAR to HMRC to get details of them all. 
Once you have that, you can find out whcih pension schemes are used by those employers here 
Find pension contact details - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)
Although note that that won't confirm if you actually had a pension with them as you could have opted out - you'd need to contact the pension provider directly to find out. 

(Going forward, and for others reading, it will save a lot of future hassle to simply save the details of each employer and pension somewhere as you get them; it needs be little more that the P45s, P60 and initial enrollment details and would probably all fit into a single box file if stored on paper or one USB stick if scanned / saved electronically). 

flossy_splodge

I thought there WAS a pension tracing service? Sure it's been mentioned on here? Anyone?

csswiift

Thanks for your help.

I did see this link earlier but wondered if technology had progressed to an easier way.

I have access to all my HMRC information online and old employers so that should be relatively easy.

What details will I need when I call the pension company to discuss whether I had contributions with them?

flossy_splodge

is this any help?

https://www.moneyhelper.org.uk/en/pensions-and-retirement/pension-problems/tracing-and-finding-lost-pensions

Best of luck

p00hsticks

flossy_splodge said:

I thought there WAS a pension tracing service? Sure it's been mentioned on here? Anyone?

I think currently only the gov.uk link I included in my post above yours - which, although referred to as the 'Pension Tracing Service', is actually only a database of employers and the pension providers they use. 

You can also put into a request to HMRC for your detailed records, which will show your past employers and so help you to track old pensions down. 

There have been proposals to develop a 'Pensions Dashboard' but I'm not sure how far this has progressed as yet...
Pensions dashboards: consultation on the draft Pensions Dashboards Regulations 2022 - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

JoeCrystal

p00hsticks said:

There have been proposals to develop a 'Pensions Dashboard' but I'm not sure how far this has progressed as yet...
Pensions dashboards: consultation on the draft Pensions Dashboards Regulations 2022 - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk)

I gathered that they failed to deliver the Pensions Dashboard on time, and now they are resetting the program again, with the full involvement of DWP, and the new Chair will develop the delivery plan. We should hear about the latest delivery timeline over the summer. The first deadline to be connected to the dashboard is 31st August 2023, which is no longer possible.

As it turns out, to the utter surprise of no one, it isn't easy to build a pension dashboard that includes all the personal and private pension schemes by August 2023, the automatic enrollment schemes from September 2023, and lastly, and amazingly, all the public sector pension schemes from September 2024 along with all other medium schemes from October 2024.

I wonder if I left something out, oh yes, the State Pension information would also be available, I believe.

You can find out all about it on this website: https://www.pensionsdashboardsprogramme.org.uk/

squirrelpie

JoeCrystal said:

I gathered that they failed to deliver the Pensions Dashboard on time

As it turns out, to the utter surprise of no one, it isn't easy to build a pension dashboard

Even when it's finished it will apparently only allow you to see your pensions before you start taking them (for some definition of that). So no use at all if you leave things too late or are simply curious.

Marcon

csswiift said:

I’m at the stage where I need to start looking at my pension and making sure I have enough money paid into it to live comfortably when I retire (still 30 years away 😫)

I have no idea where to find my work place pensions and find out how much I have in them. Is there a way of tracing them using my N.I number?

You're assuming you have some to find. If you've not moved house in recent years, and you're not getting any sort of annual communication (DC schemes have to send annual statements; DB schemes send a generic document known as a Summary Funding Statement), are you sure you belonged to any?

If you've moved house and writing to all your previous pension providers(!) with your new address wasn't top of your 'to do' list, then https://www.gov.uk/find-pension-contact-details (beware many providers with similar names who either charge a fee, or offer a 'free review') is one possibility, but unfortunately much of the information is now out of date and won't ever be updated.

csswiift said:

Thanks for your help.

I did see this link earlier but wondered if technology had progressed to an easier way.

I have access to all my HMRC information online and old employers so that should be relatively easy.

What details will I need when I call the pension company to discuss whether I had contributions with them?

You'll need to supply your NI number, full name and DOB as a minimum, plus (if you can) your approximate dates of employment and your address at the time.

Marcon

squirrelpie said:

JoeCrystal said:

I gathered that they failed to deliver the Pensions Dashboard on time

As it turns out, to the utter surprise of no one, it isn't easy to build a pension dashboard

Even when it's finished it will apparently only allow you to see your pensions before you start taking them (for some definition of that). So no use at all if you leave things too late or are simply curious.

...and, of course, it blithely assumes that all pension providers have fully accurate information in the first place...